13: A Time Lord's Hell
by Wandering7Doctors
Summary: The Rani has finally showed her hand. With Max Lin as a prisoner, the Doctor is forced to face her old comrade's most malevolent game yet. One that may cost the Time Lord her very soul, if she can survive at all. The 13th Doctor Adventures: Year One (Part 6- Finale)
1. In the Beginning

A long time ago, there was a man who embraced the potential of time travel.

His name was Rassilon, of Gallifrey, and his influence made the people of that planet lords of time. They developed a purpose of studying history and space, their careful observation made them a confirmed aspect of time. He made preemptive efforts to ensure all aspects of time be controlled, his designed foresight made the Lord High President create a little focus group of potential rebels. Though children, these souls were deemed to be influentially chaotic to existence. They were called the Deca.

One would seek to be a Master of all.

Another would be pensive as a Monk, but anything but in his heart.

A third who would be obsessed with all War.

But two were quite infamous for their capability.

The Rani, a master of chemical mayhem.

And the Doctor, who would seek out all problems.

These last two, with the Master, were the dearest of friends.


	2. The Nightmare Revealed

Max found herself wrapped in nightmares of a red-haired demon burning the galaxy. There was no way to escape the flames, and no Doctor in sight. Just a constant loop of fire, burning, and cold laughter in the void.

A jolt through her body brought Max back to life. Every muscle flared with agony but nothing was broken or bound. She managed to stand, seeing things proved a bit more difficult since everything felt blinding. When her eyes adjusted, she wished they didn't.

"Zoe!" Max ran into an invisible wall with a solid thunk, she was now lucky nothing had been broken. Groaning, massaging sore spots on her shoulder and face, Max looked more closely and depression sank in. Zoe, one of her old comrades in the Rift Games, the former captain of their team, stood a few feet away as a cyborg. The players converted never took off their helmets, which made the horror of seeing Zoe's glazed over yes, clammy greyed flesh, and hints of exposed metal work around the collar of sleek combat armor even more hellish. She wasn't alone, in fact Max began to recognize almost everyone around her, all former players from every team that been taken away to become… this. Max couldn't find the urge to scream, shout, mourn, or dread the sea of dead. Not when she heard the laughter.

"So sorry, Max, I had assumed you'd wish to wake in familiar company. Pulling up your file, it was quite simple to make this little reunion happen."

The Rani's boot echoed among the dead, marching in from a distance and booming as she came into vision. Her red hair was done up into a braided ponytail worthy of a hangman's noose. Wearing a military uniform the shade of a reaper's shadow, the manic Time Lord approached Max with hands clasped behind. Watching the young gave the Rani a cruel twinkle to her eyes.

"What do you think, this is what it's all been leading to," the Rani gestured to the amassed horrors. "I'd love to hear your hands-on experience."

Max's hands slammed against the barrier. It shook but no bones were broken thankfully. The Rani was unimpressed.

"Is that banging meant to imply you want something?"

"Tell me why you did this, psycho!" Max screamed.

The Rani's lip twitched into a slight grimace.

"You won't survive."

"I can handle any twisted junk you want to spit!"

The Rani's eyebrows lifted up.

"Are your ears faltering," the Rani said. "I am telling you the truth. Max Lin, you will not survive my machinations. As for why this all came to be, well, that should be obvious."

She walked up to the container, her face inches away from Max's.

"The Doctor must suffer, now, before she grows even further beyond my reach. Being able to outplay Rassilon should have been impossible or direct suicide and yet he was bested. Almost every sentiment bit of scum learns to dread the arrival of the Doctor. I will not be reduced to some petty nuisance in the history of my friend's silly adventures, I WILL BE HER DEATH!"

A few strands of orange hair frizzled out play. That weakness made Max think of Arthur and grin. She widened it when the Rani's expression grew even more flustered.

"You didn't answer my question." Max.

The volcano behind those eyes shook the young companion but she would not flinch before this devil. When rage simmered to dull flame, the Rani spoke.

"I needed to get the Doctor's attention. Making a string of chaos for her to follow was the easiest thing to do. I even left things sporadic enough to guarantee one or more wretched fools would join the party, be a 'companion'. Just another means of reeling in my proper target."

Max's mind filled with images of Devil Leeches, shadowy parasites, and the Sponsors. Seeing so many souls mutilated, corrupted, and annihilated to nothing. Horror brought a vindictive gleam to the Rani's eyes.

"Oh yes, Max, what you dread to ask is correct; I am that nightmare made flesh who would sacrifice hundreds of thousands, threaten billions, all to call up an old friend for a chat."

She leaned in, her breath fogged up the barrier but cold gaze was unaffected.

"Imagine how little you mean to me and recognize that, yes, I can do far worse. Do not tempt me. Just play your part and wait for the Doctor."

A familiar roar boomed throughout the space. The hum of a Tardis. Max's dread contrasted with the Rani's glee. The Time Lord turned away, disappearing among the crowd.  
"As for why your alive, I intend to study how a companion loses all hope. Now pay attention, Max Lin, you're going to see the Doctor's cruelest fall."

Her laughter was drowned out by the Tardis's arrival chime. Seeing the blue box made Max slam against the barrier. She couldn't do a thing, worse, the doors were directed at her. Max Lin could only watch as the Doctor arrived to her doom.


	3. Death of a Soul

Whatever happened, the situation needed to play out.

That line of thinking gave the Doctor enough courage to open the door and step forward. She stood what felt like a factory, one massive space with a walkway where her Tardis had landed. A quick adjustment helped the Doctor redirect her landing to see what mattered.

Max Lin immediately perked up, screaming and bashing into a barrier. It looked like a strange test tube surrounded by… the cybernetic mutilations of former Rift Game competitors. This madness would end, now.

"Over here, Doctor." The Rani's voice echoed sweetly across the realm of madness. In the distance, there was a massive collection of lit-up screens and a control console setup worthy of an organ piano. Its conductor orchestrated a rhythmic clatter of keys and twisting of dials to express an unholy electronic wail.

"I'd say you were late, but my code placed this meeting at exactly the point I desired. So good to properly meet face to face."

The Doctor decided she needed a closer look. Locking up the Tardis with a turn of the key, she took steady steps towards the monitor. Eyes shifted about, taking in every detail and how far apart everything was with each step. All the little details, that's what it took to save a universe.

"Would you mind actually making this face to face?" The Doctor asked. "Just getting a bit uneasy about that ponytail of yours. Looks prepped to chomp off eyebrows."

The clattering took on a bitter tone. Swiveling around, both Time Lords look each other in the eye. She missed being able to see her friend with kindness, now there was only disappointment. The Rani never seemed to notice.

"Well, you wanted me, and here I am." The Doctor bowed. "You know the phone booth's not for show, I do take calls."

"Are you saying all this work wasn't necessary?"

"It never is, Rani," the Doctor said. "It could never be."

The Rani shrugged.

"That would only proven by a lack of results," she said. "And yet here you are, proving this the most effective way of getting what I want."

The Doctor could feel the lack of air expressed from the nearby dead, an ocean of emptiness.

"This is never the way." Anger burned in her eyes, even the Rani's hands shook despite the smile.

"Excellent," the wicked Time Lord said. "So full of rage, this will be grand to witness."

"Tell me, Doctor," the Rani ran her hand along the console while maintaining eye contact. "Would you like to hear how I plan to kill you, or be stubborn and permit me to reduce dear Max to soup." A finger caressed the bright-red button, waiting to be pressed.

The Doctor took a step back, she wouldn't dare endanger Max's life further. The Rani sighed, disappointed, and clasped her hands together.

"Doctor, I can never defeat you."

This made the Time Lord take a moment and blink away complete confusion.

"Oh," She said. "Well, I happily accept your surrender."

The Rani laughed, it was a nasty kind that seemed to split the face with glee over things that shouldn't be enjoyed.

"Do you actually believe that could ever work?"

"Well, I figure it can't hurt to try. Odds are one of you might take up the offer." The Doctor said with a sigh. "Fine then, what's your latest attempt to murder me?"

Both Time Lords said nothing. The Rani casually tapped several keys and pulled up a small village on the screens. The angles implied cameras were affixed to every major corner, creating a perfect lens to view every soul traversing the streets.

"This is Yardingale, Doctor, on the Planet Torpil. The village shall be your grave."

"Interesting," the Doctor said as she eyed the screen and gave scant glances at the console. "Looks to be Winter down there, I'm assuming we're in orbit above the little town. Something in the gravity gives it away, bit too minty to be the real thing. There doesn't appear to be any sign that this land has known conflict."

"It will be soon enough, Doctor," The Rani gestured to the armada of corpses, tanks full of Devil Leeches, Shadow Skins, and other maladies became visible. "I've been preparing to unleash perfect Hell for quite some time, but I needed you right in the middle."

"Bad idea," the Doctor hummed as she managed to count off how many of each malady was on display. "Doom and me are a bad combination. I tend spoil all that agony and torment. Real shame, putting in all that work just t—"

The Rani snapped her fingers.

Every solider, parasite, and weapon became consumed in light before vanishing.

Before she could, the screens lit up with hundreds of screams. The horrors of Ramification Nightmares rapidly tore through the populace with ease. Max and the Doctor could only watch as in a matter of minutes, the whole of Yardingale became reduced of ashes. Only the crunch of boots, slither of leeches, and abruptly silenced cries were heard on the audio.

The Doctor had to take a moment to process how she had stopped breathing, her chest hurt. That pain turned to anger.

"Hmm, the hypothesis promised at least five minutes for complete decimation but I do fear there were a few lingering seconds. Should I have factored in how large some homes were?"

She looked away from the screens to finally notice the Doctor towering over her, teeth clenched and hands gripping the chair firmly enough to leave nail marks even when the hands let go. The Rani looked disappointed.

"Still restrained, unbelievable," the Rani shook her head. "But, don't fret, I knew this wouldn't work without proper motivation." She pulled out a small sonic screwdriver, winked at the Doctor, and activated it.

A gong boomed throughout the interior. This caused the Doctor look at the Rani with skepticism.

"This can't be."

"But it is, Doctor, a Tardis within a Tardis," the Rani said. "I know, usually two time-bending anomalies would make All the Cloister Bells of Gallifrey scream in unison, but I worked around it. That little code of coordinates from before shut down your Tardis, put it to sleep after a quick jump and so only mine is in play. Don't be too confused, I'm giving you a present."

When the humming stopped, they appeared to be in the same place as before, but the Doctor knew better. She could taste the static particles, feel the freshness of the air. Artificial or not, the filtered air was newer… by about…

"Ten minutes," the Rani said as she jabbed into the Doctor's shoulder. "It was getting boring seeing you piece the puzzle together. I've put in a lot of work into this madness, Doctor, so allow me to be a tad impatient and explain. Yardingale is doomed, I sent my nightmares and they'll arrive ten minutes from now. On your shoulder is a teleporter." She gestured to the blinking yellow square on the Doctor's lapel.

"You have until they arrive to find a way of stopping my mass-produced Apocalypse."

Yardingale still remained on the monitors, the people completely oblivious. Some part of her wondered about paradoxes, but technically so long as the armada were stopped once leaving the Rani's Tardis the whole universe should remain intact.

"I'm sure you're already thinking about how to best play the hero," the Rani said with a smirk. "But I have designed this so that your less-than kind nature will be this village's only survival. It will take a Monster to stop this Hell. You met him once to know he's effective, at your trial."

The Doctor's skin prickled with an unholy chill.

"Funny how Gallifrey records are easily stored, even redacted trials can be easily discovered." The Rani stood up, the Doctor didn't acknowledge the action. She pulled out a piece of pale paper that shined with eternal radiance that only Time Lords could develop. While reading, the Rani made her voice deeper, slightly mocking, but catching the Master's old tone.

" _There is some evil in all of us, Doctor, even you. The Valeyard is an amalgamation of the darker sides of your nature. Somewhere between… your Twelfth and Final incarnation._ "

She crumpled the paper, laughing manically. The Doctor was frozen processing words from long ago and their greater danger now. The Time Lord offered no resistance at being spun around.

"How many changes, Doctor?" The Rani leered. "What with clones from hands, a Doctor for War, and even gaining a new regeneration cycle; I do believe we are owed a Valeyard."

And so the game was revealed, all an excuse to bring out a devil.

"Won't work, I beat him ages ago."

"EXACTLY!" The Rani cheered. "You beat him, and him being you, ends the story. No further Doctors because of a closed loop, where you circle back only to be ended. Or maybe you dabble about, but ultimately, I no longer have a Doctor to worry about."

She raised a hand, hovering over the badge on the Doctor's lapel. Teleported into a warzone. A mixing pot for all things vile, to create someone worse.

"I can stop your war without getting dirty." The Doctor said firmly.

"No," the Rani said. "But you will try, and my little patch will make you pop back here every time you die. And you'll volunteer to try repeatedly to save a doomed village. Desperation will breed darkness, bringing out the Valeyard. Little Max will watch as the greatest protector of the universe loses their soul."

The Doctor gave Max a reassuring smile, seeing her friend fight to break free only to fail.

"Then again," the Rani said sweetly while inching closer to the patch. "Should the strain simply kill you off before the Valeyard can be born, know I may… mourn. Maybe even shed a tear."

With a wink and solid slap, the Doctor was sent to hell.


	4. Endless War

The trick to war is one thing to keep in mind, it is not evil. It can be used to justify vile actions, kill millions, but ultimately the term makes no allegiance. War is a declaration of death for all.

 **Attempt 1**

The Doctor arrived right in the middle of an intersection. Snow crunched under each step of her boots as she rushed about Yardingale. There were a total of thirty buildings, twenty wooden homes with frost-kissed roofs, two markets on the Northern and Southern ends of town, four craft shops that dealt in wood/metal work, one police station, one delivery service, two hunting lodges near the heart of town, and many villagers who paid no mind to the madwoman running about like the world was about to end.

 _Give it time…_

Remembering the cameras and… remaining clam through the horrific imagery of the onslaught to come, the Doctor theorized that the enemy would come in from the North. Outside the glow of lamp posts at every street corner, the Doctor vaguely m—

She barely heard the laser, the fall felt like a dull thud, while streams of laser fire flew past her. Screaming echoed in the Doctor's vision blurred to darkness.

The Doctor gasped, clutched at an undamaged gut. She had returned to the Rani's Tardis, the cries of horror booming in the audio system. The Rani waited patiently as her fellow Time Lord staggered back towards the console. Offering her hand, the Doctor saw the Rani preparing to touch the badge. With nod, the badge was activated and madness began again.

 **Attempt 2**

The Doctor had noticed massive bells atop the police station. A quick flex of the Sonic Screwdriver, and everyone in Yardingale came out to see the commotion. The psychic paper helped convince everyone to trust the newest security warden, demanding everyone who their rifles or spears (a good number of them), grab the metal sheets from the town's craftsmen; they're about to be under siege.

Several of the men and women had been of service in wars, drafted to help on the frontlines and in supporting roles. A few even maintained their old blasters. A layered barricade was created in a few minutes thanks to quick crafting tools necessary on a planet where Winter is a third of the year. They had a sizable wall with three feet of thickness and slight gaps for sight and shooting. It proved effective as fire crashed into their defenses as if lightning had grown fists. The hunters and soldiers did their work, no shot wasted thanks to experience of making every kill count when it came to scarce meat. Soon the armada's footsteps stomped louder than the weapon fire as they got closer. Anyone not holding a rifle had crafted/handed out spears of hard wood for when they came around the barrier.

The marching stopped.

They were just beside the barricade, not minding even as villagers took shots or stabs them their still forms. The Doctor processed how the bodies weren't actually the threat, just everything attached. That was when she heard the faint beeping rising in pitch.

"Get b—"

The combined explosion took everyone.

 **Attempt 5**

A quick bit of engineering and even daring to stand between the enemy and the barricade gave the Doctor more than enough intel. Grounding some copper wires to the barriers using steel stakes and a generator created a magnet of a shield. Support beams made sure the weapons and armored warriors who smacked into the barrier didn't topple it over. The magnetic field was strong enough to deactivate the bombs.

But the screams didn't stop.

Something shifted within the snow, collapsing as they clutched their ankles before dying a second later.

It took three Devil Leeches to put the Doctor down.

 **Attempt 20**

The Doctor managed to get as many people as possible inside the market, a solid floor prevented the leeches from biting through… for now. Hearing too many that got locked out in the frenzy made the Doctor process how many different types of Hell would be known before this was done. She just needed to keep at it, find the pattern to win.

At least the people had their gu—

Laser blasts erupted within the market. She followed the screams to see that the Shadow Skins had possessed those armed. There was barely enough time to process anything before they aimed at combustible ta—

 **Attempt 34**

The Rani was twisting the game.

The Sonic Screwdriver activated at a frequency that deafened the Doctor, and the Leeches came earlier.

 **Attempt 66**

A pile of salt managed to crash into the Doctor as she staggered out of the decimated market, the Devil Leeches flew, seemingly missing the salt dust before they bite.

 **Attempt 94**

The Rani started making the townsfolk think the Doctor was leading the attack. She was in a cell, forced to abandon the Sonic Screwdriver, and made to listen to the horrors outside under armed guard. The screams followed her even when dying, revived, or in-between. No matter how hard the Doctor squeezed her ears.

 **135**

A voice had became more eager through the anger of losing so often. Demanding to use everything. Become greater than Time Lord Victorious. This was no stranger's beckoning, no devil, the voice belonged to herself.

That made it harder to ignore

And yet…

 **?**

The Doctor lost count of it all. The Rani didn't mind, simply activating the badge without any confirmation. A treadmill of spikes and fire, dragging her along until…

This seemed like a good moment to fall.

The Doctor collapsed, no physical pain, but the exhaustion of hundreds of deaths had weighed down everything.

The Rani leaned forward, failing to get a proper view. She stood up, walking over to gaze down at a defeated foe.

 _She finally left the console._

The Doctor snapped her fingers.


	5. Halftime

Max Lin's hands were sore from hammering at invisible walls. Without the twisted machinations, it became easier to see her friend in agony. The Doctor was hurting. Time reversed itself every time she died, the Rani shoved her back into madness, and Max could only watch. Hunger, thirst, even fatigue meant nothing, not when looking at the Doctor.

Max's voice had gone hoarse from screaming, tears had become red-blistered stains on her face, but she managed a little more shouting when the Doctor collapsed.

"It's not over, Doc," she screamed. "We don't lose, not here, not today."

The Rani sauntered over to the Doctor, a pensive face worthy of one prepped to dissect a frog.

"DOCTOR!" She kept ramming the walls but nothing broke through.

 _Snap_

It was weak, but somehow Max heard the sound. A sudden creak followed and she turned her head. The noises were hollow, as if only… Max could notice them. The source wasn't hard to find.

The Tardis door had opened slightly ajar. Max noticed this because the ship faced her directly. A blur of some kind rolled forward like tumbleweed in the old films. It grew until Max started to back away. It passed through the barrier and struck before she had a chance to yelp.

Max Lin had reached her absolute limit of waking up in strange places.

At least this location felt safe, for whatever reason.

"Doctor?" She asked, seemed the best thing to ask when things were getting weird to process.

"Yes?" Four men asked in unison.

Max gasped, she hadn't expected that to work or to have company. She stayed still, not sure if the strangers could be trusted. There was a sense of quiet debating going on above her, she couldn't see anything past the… desks. Max focused on the ceiling, anyone who ever dealt with academia knew how to recognize a classroom. One of them stepped about so Max could see them directly.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor," a man in striped blue suit, red running shoes, and spiked brown hair reached down for her. "Up ya get." She only needed a minute to look him in eyes… to see Hers.

Taking his hand, he helped steady her as she got to fully take in the classroom and the other three men. It was a wide space with blackboard taking up one wall, desks, assorted books, no doors, and overhead lights. One man was clad in leather with impressive ears, another had a tweed jacket with a sturdy chin, and the oldest of them had frayed grey hair with stern eyes. They wore name tags but only had numbers, the one who helped her up had 10.

"You're her then," Max said. "The Doctor, her past selves."

"Correct," 9 said with a broad grin. "Pleasure to be of service."

"Well, actually, that's not entirely true." 11 said. "It's like we're echoes, except we're not."

"And there you go again," 12 muttered. "Saying one thing but disagreeing at the same time, how is it anyone put up with that? Acting cleverer than you should be."

"Oi," 11 countered. "Better than being scary grandad."

"That's enough," 9 said. "Can't believe I'm saying this, but we need to get over ourselves. Help out our friend."

11 and 12 sighed before looking relenting.

"They always like this?" Max asked 10.

"Well, who else do you find a reason to argue with besides yourself?" 10 said. "And they're not wrong. We aren't technically her, Max, we are… the half-time entertainment. Time to make a new strategy."

The four men assembled themselves before the blackboard, facing Max, in numerical order. Giving each other quick glances, they quietly made their decisions of what to say.

"Right then." They said in unison. "Ask us what you need to know."

Max almost felt compelled to sit but recovered, no time to act lesser. This needed to be a group effort.

"Who's the Rani, why is she doing this?"

"Okay then," 9 said. "The Rani is a Time Lord, like us, bit batty with a love for chemistry. She wants us gone, bring out the Valeyard, who we beat four versions before this handsome face. That can't happen."

"How are we here? How is the Rani this dangerous?" Max said.

"I can take this one." 10 said.

"The Rani and I were part of The Deca, a sort-of 'Think Tank' of future renegade Time Lords. They used to place us in little bubbles of time, make one minute last months to teach us obedience. This here is the friendlier version. We didn't have enough time, barely a minute, but clever me created a quick bubble. Wonders of a time machine."

"Okay," Max said. "So, how do we win this?"

"Easy," 11 said. "Right now, there's a little pocket of time between here and the Tardis. We're going to make a plan, the best plan, and sabotage this mini war. Kick over the game board."

"And to do that, we need you," 12 said, pulling out a piece of chalk. "The books assembled are your life story, your memories, even the bits that feel miniscule. Everything counts. We're an echo of your friend, the same way you enter a room and just tell a lot of talking has gone on. Together, Max Lin, we will help you stop the Rani. Ready?"

He tossed the chalk and Max caught it with fluid grace.

"Yes I am."

Shoving the desks aside, the Doctors and Companion pulled out the books. Ones dealing with her home planet were pushed aside, everything about the Rift Games was quickly analyzed, minute knowledge of Ramification Nightmare machinations were critiqued, and the largest volume read by each of them was a 'brief' manual of a Tardis which demanded a sturdier table to endure opening to the first page as well as step ladder read it. They stopped for breaks occasionally, getting better acquainted.

She got along with 9 the most, the accent helped as well as the combination of glee mixed with seriousness.

"So, you got a lucky lady waiting at the end of this?" 9 said while listening to 12 play a calming bass.

"I guess," Max said. "But that's not really important, with the whole universe at stake."

The pleasant demeanor became stern.

"Make it personal," 9 said. "Make meeting her as real and precious as everything in the universe. Hold tight to knowing, not hoping, you'll be able to say all you've ever wanted to and more. Treat every life as hers and the Rani won't stand a chance."

Max closed her eyes, thinking of Candace, long blonde hair flowing from a nearby breeze with a wide smile. The image created an ache where a ring sh… _would_ be. 9 smiled, not saying a word afterwards. He seemed to know how precious love could be.

10 was focused on working with chemicals, showing off how to mix combinations to help with the game plan.

"Do you ever get tired of it," Max said. "Doing this, moving forward?"

10 took off the spectacles he used for eye protection, leaning against the table while he answered.

"Honestly, I felt like I was prepped to go for so long that I wouldn't really know why to move forward, that thought always scared me. Forgetting the goal, pretending I had a mission, and traveling blind even with every map in the universe. Too busy playing hero and forgetting why."

"Yeah," Max said. "I kind of felt like that too, back with the Rift games. I just lead, trying to keep everyone alive and kept feeling like liar… when I couldn't." She eyed the Doctor, not hers but there was an echo of her in each of them. "Meeting you showed me I could do more than survive, that the day could be saved."

10 smiled.

"Well," he said with a bow. "I learned from the best." Giving her a knowing look and wink before they got back to mixing chemicals, he let Max do more of the work so she'd be ready.

11 tried to fun, but there was a coldness to it that unnerved Max, especially since they both knew how serious things were. He scribbled out puzzles, trying to expand her mind by having Max crack them in a few minutes. The plan was that once Max broke out of the bubble, time would resume and she'd have a renegade Time Lord as well as the Sponsors to deal with. They were along the railings of an upper balcony, inert, and waiting to be unleashed. 11 tried to help Max imagine all the possibilities.

"Time Lords are pretty simple," 11 said. "We think we're the smartest people in the room because we are. It's the convincing everyone else that makes all the explosions happen. I've gotten better at being more imaginative, but you'll need something else."

Max had completed her latest puzzle, failing once against again because she failed consider how custard could be applied to quantum physics. The puzzles weren't helping because she wasn't a Time Lord but only one of them could fly a Tardis. Tampering with the console was no good if Max couldn't some other way outmaneuver everything trying to kill her. What they needed to do was… make a mess.

She pushed aside puzzles, 11 looked prepped to complain before being cut off with a simple question of Tardis mechanics. A quick glance through a psychic image of what Max saw, they found their answer. It was extremely dangerous, no guarantee it would be inconveniencing enough, but that didn't matter. Max Lin found what would give her the home field advantage.

Her last bits of time were spent with 12. They rolled through the plan, every step no matter how haphazard, needed clear precision. She didn't know what to say to him, feeling unnerved by how clear-cut 12 was compared to the Doctors prior to him. This was the truest face behind all those smiles quirky quips. Yet, Max knew 12 had been the Doctor just before hers.

"Is she kind?" He asked.

"What?"

"Me, the one you know, is she kind?" 12's bitter voice was softer than it had been the entire time they spoke. "I… asked for whatever way I moved forward to be that, to be happy. Is she?"

The question was curious, even after reading over Max's journeys that was clearly not enough. Somehow, Max was being asked to be a judge of the Doctor's character. The calm, pensive, stature implied this decision would be taken to heart, both of them.

"I don't really know you, her, too well sometimes," Max explained. "I think she does try to be kind, even when it's hard to tell. For me, the Doctor I know still likes to help people, lives for it."

12 took a long moment to respond, eyeing her, and books expressing his future.

"Good."

That was the only thing he said on the subject before chalking up the plan with great passion. He clearly liked where his future was heading.

The plan had been set, every little thing of what needed to be done drilled into Max Lin's head. All four Doctor's stood with her, no longer bickering or making jokes. This tenacity from each of them, Max had seen it many times now. The Doctor on the verge of winning.

"Glad I met you," Max said. "I'm not exactly sure how good I am at the Companion thing compared to who you've known, but I'll do my best."

"Of course," 12 said as he handed her his guitar. "We don't make mistakes with who we choose to be in charge of us."

"Someone clever." 11 said.

"Someone kind." 10 said.

"Someone who helps us remember how precious those stars are." 9 said.

"And that's you, Max Lin," 12 said. "Now go make sure the story continues, she your tale through."

That made Max pause, awareness finally settled in her head. Victory meant the end of her time with the Doctor. Nothing could avoid that, Candace would get her answer. The end of the story, parting of friends. It helped her grip the instrument with great care.

Saying goodbye was always cooler with a guitar.

She had tried to form a band back on Jaret V, a humiliating effort but she at last learned to play the strings to one of her favorite songs.

 _In My Life (I Loved You More)_ , by The Beatles.

It would be the song she'd play at her wedding.

The Doctors listened, smiling, and as the final string was strung Max bowed. She gave them a quick grin, remembering what they said would break the trance.

"See you soon."

And with a final strum of guitar strings, the finale had begun.


	6. Endgame

The world returned to Max's vision but time remained frozen. She remembered the Doctor's explanation, how a tunnel between her prison and the Tardis would be maintained. Now for the part that demanded literally stretching physics.

Reaching forward, Max pressed into the barrier until her fingers pushes through stilled particles of energy. She carefully glided down until there was a clear hole created. Stepping through, Max turned her head to just make sure everything was still stuck in not-killing-me phase of frozen. Keeping calm, she carefully stepped towards the Tardis.

Pushing through the door, Max found some comfort in the ship but knew it couldn't last. Luckily, the field had apparently spread through a good amount of the Tardis, more than enough for where Max needed to go. Zipping by the swimming pool, making three rights and four lefts, and snapping her fingers forty times the door to the chemistry lab opened. Inside, the Doctor stored trillions of ancient pathogens, vaccines, varying degrees of bacteria throughout millennia. This place also contained genetic material attained during adventures in time and space. Including Tilorian essence, perfect killer of Shadow Skins.

To call Max Lin's experience with chemistry poor would be an understatement after an experiment on a squirrel had resulted in her being banned for life from taking science classes in in her academia. How was she to know creating a fire-breathing rodent would 'create a neighborhood menace', it's not like she had an actual dragon to play make believe with as a kid. Now those days were far too innocent compared to the actual monsters faced. Luckily, she didn't need to know anything about science, just what the machine that mixed/cloned liquid solutions looked like. A nearby transporter was wide enough for multiple jars of the Tilorian slime to be held, with coordinates a few meters off from where the Doctor beamed down to Yardingale. There was no way to know what the doctor encountered on the planet surface, but this stopped one of the more problematic elements. The rest relied on Time Lord ingenuity, which Max could attest always measured up.

What followed would be more unpleasant. Max had to break the bubble.

This was the worse part of the plan, all or nothing. 11 had tried to explain it like popping a bubble, but not, which prompted 12 to swat him on the back of the head. 11complained while 12 massaged his cranium. 9, the best with words at times, explained how Max could bend the bubble so it stretched towards the console. When it broke, she'd have at least ten seconds. She knew what button to press and what to do afterwards. None of them had been too reassuring after that point but ultimately this would be up to Max's skill to resolve.

Thinking she was in a bubble, the most flexible one ever made, the companion pressed both hands against its blurred layer and pushed. Max didn't dare to curl her fingers in case the slightest puncture worked. She pushed a foot ahead, stepped to stretch it then repeated the process. The steady walk towards the console was slow, it demanded looking right at the Rani. Not the most pleasant thing to observe when trying to keep cool.

Eventually Max close enough to kick the wicked Time Lord right in the jaw. Temptation… eventually subsided. She did stumble a bit but recovered and carefully moved closer to her destination. So many buttons were laid out, enough to rewire the entire universe. Luckily prep-work had prevented things from being too much of a guessing game. A few more minutes would have helped, but then Max heard the hissing.

Turning her head, she realized the bubble had wobbled from the earlier stumble. The Rani had contacted the layer, at the elbow. Time has slowly come back to the Time Lord, gritted teeth and unholy fury within their eyes as the sound made expressed nothing but rage.

 _Well, no reason to make it boring now._ Max did her best to focus on not making those thoughts the last. Slamming her hand through the barrier, the right button was pressed as time resumed. A certainly fatal energy blast had been hitched slightly, taking out a screen that would have been Max's head. Kicking back into the chair, struggling to stay planted now that gravity had been shut off, Max clicked a switch that enveloped her in an energy. A bright flash implied the Rani's second shot had been ineffective. Now it became much easier to hear the Time Lord screech in real-time.

"You're going to pray the leeches had finished you off before I'm done with you, wretched human!"

A new sound entered Max's ears. She knew it quite well.

 **MAAXXX**

The constant peril had just become more annoying than harrowing. Still, the companion couldn't help looking up. Sponsors, three of them, soaring down like chatty missiles.

 **YOU SHOULDN'T UPSET MANAGEMENT!**

This was it, one little moment to save it all. Best bit, Max Lin got show why they never should have taught her how to play in zero gravity. Time for a field goal, Max thought.

Rolling about so she be could pressed into a ball, Max flipped the switch. Shields shut down and as the companion kicked off. Spinning helped make the third shot buzz by and hit one of the Sponsors. A steady roll from there picked up momentum into a spinning kick. She'd timed the maneuver too many times, lives had been on the line; Max Lin always made her kicks count.

A roar turned into cry of pain as booted-heel clanged into a metal head. Managing not to black out, Max haphazardly floated about before grabbing an upper railing from the floor. Looking down, the Rani could be seen prepping to take aim, failing to notice what made Max smile through the pain. She had felt a head lurch downwards.

The Sponsor had no way of stopping Its moment, crashing right through the Rani's console. Both Time Lords were knocked back while the third Sponsor landed with only a slight crater. It prepped to jump after Max but a sudden buzzing made Its head pop off.

The Doctor's screwdriver then aimed at what little remained of the console. The Time Lord then aimed at her Tardis, which radiated with life. Before the Rani could do anything, the Doctor whacked her with the sonic which now carried an electric charge. Sparks of electricity jolted the Rani, making her twitch before going still in the growing darkness. It made the Tardis's light so much more welcoming.

"Max," the Doctor voice called out. "You okay?"

"Been better, Doc," Max said, she couldn't tell if the tears floating out her were from pain or joy. "Are we done?"

"Almost," the Time Lord said, happily, it was the joy that made hope real. "Just got to stop a war. Send the Tardis in about ten minutes. She'll know the way."

A sudden flash and Max knew the Doctor had reactivated the badge for one last fight. She wasn't worried, even after everything while floating down to the Tardis, Max Lin knew the fight had been finished. Ramification Nightmares had been taken down and all it took was a busted leg. The Doctor could handle everything else.

Afterall, stopping a war was just cleanup for a Doctor.


	7. The Night of the Strange Defender

How do you make a nightmare a dream? If it's lived on repeat enough, the trick is to take all the nasty details and know how to stop them. The Doctor lived over 30 hours of Hell to crack it in less than 10 minutes.

First step, warning the neighbors.

The Doctor had spent a bit of time getting to know the locals, either by trying to save each one or from word of mouth. It tends to surprise someone to a letter with their name attached to their doors, telling them they're in danger and to stay indoors. The laser fire convinced most folks to agree. The mechanics and carpenters had been given more curious post script.

 _SORRY, NEEDED TO BORROW SOME TOOLS_

 _-THE DOCTOR_

Collecting the minutes of experience had helped paint a curious idea of a vehicle. Using ski supplies, a canoe, metal takes polarized with copper wire, goggles, and multiple bags of chemically adjusted salt the Doctor had created a crazy snowmobile. Flying over the snow, the Doctor planted stakes with rapid precision as she lapped the village. With a flick of her screwdriver, the circle was activated drawing every laser blast followed the soldiers who were shut down with the magnetized field. She would make a record of every loss and send word to their loved ones, give them a proper burial.

Creating an inner circle of salt had been a good first step, but the Devil Leeches were probably a little more stubborn than that. Luckily the Doctor had learned to maneuver about very smoothly, and had created a bit of bait. Some pieces of meat, hyper cooked with the high-power current and tossing them into the snow… with extra sodium.

They were mauled in seconds, the shriveled remains of the worms coiled up everywhere. The rest tried to escape and met the other circle. Snow and salt would poison any chance of replicating these demented monstrosities. A slight flicker of darkness crossed the Doctor's eyesight, the final devil into play.

This one was resolved thanks to Max.

As Shadow Skins skulked into the homes of Yardingale's locals, they were immediately met microspores of the enzyme Tilorians made, burning away instantly. Max had worked through the time bubble, teleporting the concoction into every home, focused on homes with hints of weapons or large families.

And with that, three impossible foes had been reduced to nothing. The power of a Time Lord was built on a tenacity to help others and galaxies worth of patience. The Rani had tried to spoil that with wanted posters implying the danger of the Doctor with a picture of her. Granted while the people of Yardingale would agree at the dangerous power aspect, perhaps the threat wasn't directed at them. A good number of them had been soldiers, they recognized an armed invasion quite easily, even if they weren't used to a war ending without a fight.

The people looked about and then heard a curious groan. Following the sound, despite the bitter cold, made the crows turn one corner to observe a strange blue box. The woman from the posters was walking right into it. She stopped, turning to observe the confused people a few feet away.

"Name's the Doctor, and it had been my honor." She gave them a quick salute and closed the door behind her.

The strange box left as if it were never there, the slight indent of a square space quickly filled in by falling snow. Those who had witnessed the oddity made a habit, every year, to gather a set of iron stakes, the ones used to save them, and place them there. On top was placed a picture of their savior. Yardingale never knew a hard Winter from that point forward, no threat of malice again.

Just many, many years of peace.

With a quiet holiday remembering the woman who had preserved it.


	8. Making Amends (Farewell & Thanks)

The concept of a Tardis had other applications in good hands. Condensing space could be used to house unpleasant people in prisons the length of continents. No noise echoed from the Doctor's footsteps as she walked by leafless trees on a path leading to this realm's only occupant.

There were no weapons, need for food or drink, and no means of escape unless one's jailers permitted it. The Doctor never knew these Wardens to be so lenient. Not when one of the worst of the Deca finally was asked to answer for her crimes.

"Still disappointed I spared you, Rani?"

The renegade Time Lord pouted, sitting in the pale sand under a cloudless sky. There were no restraints or bars, because threats of violence to visitors or efforts to escape were futile. The Doctor knew one better reason to not fear harm as they sat side by side.

The Rani's curiosity could never permit her to kill the only person who could explain why the experiment failed.

"Did you know that Master died?"

The Rani was silent.

"Yeah," the Doctor continued. "Regenerated into a woman, Missy she called herself, and honestly she seemed to be having a lot more fun in those days." Her next words came out in a strained tone.

"Missy's prior regeneration killed her, ending their timeline completely, I think… he did it because he believed she w-… had changed for the better. He was afraid that a kinder future caused his past, where he had been 'strong', to become meaningless."

"He succeeded where you failed then." The Rani finally said. "You decided to continue your little games of playing hero, instead of permitting a proper end. Becoming the Valeyard and stopping yourself would have given you proper end. I dread the nightmare you may become by rejecting a simpler path." Her smirk implied anything but fear. The smile became thin as she noticed a lack of trouble on the Doctor's face.

"You really don't understand how you lost, do you?"

"You cheated!" The Rani snapped.

"Well you were manipulating the deaths of millions, seemed fair to make sure it stopped where it did." The Doctor said with a shrug.

"More importantly, you think the Master ending his future was an act of victory. Not so, it would have been braver to be more than the Deca made us to be. The Valeyard was what they wanted me to be, not a Doctor, in the same way they wanted a Master, a Mad Monk, a War Master, and even a Rani. All of us, reduced to little scary stories for the universe to quake before, so Gallifrey could be protected in fear. Just another form of control by Rassilon."

The Doctor placed a hand on the Rani's shoulder, she flinched as if kindness were more toxic than poison.

"We're the only two left, Rani," the Doctor said. "The rest became the villains they were expected to become and died evil deaths. Our paths are bigger than madness or doom, living as long as I have, embracing a greater skill of help, those choices made someone bigger than anything I could have been. Maybe, with time, you might know what that's like too."

The Rani chuckled grimly.

"Even after all I've done, you expect I'll make parole?"

"What I'm saying is that you're going to do some good."

The chuckling stopped.

"What?"

"The Sisterhood is going to make you appreciate the value of life and how to better protect it, from you especially. My suggestion, you see, I believe you can be good. Missy proved that, that is the only reason the Master would dare take their lives. I beat my demon, and I'll stand by you to help face yours, redeem millions lost by the billions yet to be saved."

The Rani looked at her, not with anger or fear, only awareness. This astute gleam had been what made them become dear friends.

"You've become… so human." The Rani was too baffled by the conclusion to properly convey how such a revelation could be seen.

The Doctor shrugged as she stood up, knowing without any communication that their time had ended.

"That's the trick, Rani," the Doctor said. "The lesson I take from my companions. I am at my best when I can echo theirs."

As the gap widened with every step, the Doctor noted a slight shift in the tension within that space.

That sensation proved that hopefully all that had been lost would be redeemed in the end, by shaping something… more.

The surface of the planet Karn always looked as jagged the mood of their head Priestess, Ohilia. The woman had become a familiar face in the Doctor's life, the one who crafted a War Doctor. She was a defining moment that shaped the Time Lord's life, even to this day.

That gave her the potential of being the most dangerous force in the Doctor's life.

"The return of the Rassilon may redeem some of your antics, Doctor, but I expect Gallifrey may always be an unpleasant realm to visit." She spoke in the same mythical tone that promised everything horrible with the indifference of stepping in a puddle.

"Good point," the Doctor said with a sigh. "Maybe giving out a fruitcake every Christmas might ease the pain a bit, you reckon? You do know what fruit is I hope?"

Ohilia did not dignify an answer. The Doctor's mood shifted to a more serious tone, out of respect as much as clarification.

"My friend is to be given a chance to be better, punishment through community service. I have your word on that."

"You do not command me here, Doctor, Lord President or not, Karn owes you no favors."

"True," the Doctor said. "But you also know how unwise it is to be disagree with me at times too."

Ohilia's face showed no emotion. The Doctor nodded, her message received, and proceeded down the stone pathway to her Tarids. She stopped after a few feet, without turning around.

"Those potions you made, could one of them make a Valeyard?"

Her silence expressed a greater purpose than 'destiny' in making a Doctor of War, perhaps the hint of… experimenting.

"Community service," she said flatly. "I'll be watching."

She didn't need or desire to hear how that action would be mutual while walking back to her beloved ship.

Max was sitting down, a medical brace helped in repairing the leg broken from before. The companion made no sign of arguing with the Rani's fate. She knew that the Doctor would not disrespect those fallen out pity for a former friend.

"You'll make it count, Doc," Max said. "You bend the whole damn universe if that's what it takes."

"I will." The Doctor said.

The two nodded, and with that the actions of Ramification Nightmares were finally finished.

With a flick of the switch, they started the long journey home. It lasted less than a few minutes in silence. The chasm started before any further words were needed. Max Lin looked to be standing on her own feet even without the brace. This was the woman who defeated the Rani, and the Doctor would fight to make sure she could be worthy of that level of strength.

When the Tardis landed, the finality of it all set in. The worlds seen, people met, and victories made were about to became as transparent as the ship that would soon depart. The Doctor's hands hovered over the controls, she'd be lying if the act of immediately going anywhere else wasn't very tempting. Max again proved her strength.

"Doc," the Doctor turned to see a Tardis key handed back to her. "Thanks for helping me get back."

The Doctor looked at the key, knowing that the tale had come to an end. One of the first to know her in this fresh start, but never the last. Whoever came afterwards, they would be phenomenal souls, just like Max Lin.

"It's been my honor." Gripping the key, she had freed her friend from the horrors of Time Lords.

They stood, awkwardly, realizing how much changed from that crazy little moment in a locker room. This was not a sad farewell. That acceptance in both their eyes made what happened next much easier. The Doctor snapped her fingers.

The Tardis doors opened, outside it was at least 10 minutes after Max's teammates from the Rift games had been dropped off. The Doctor suddenly felt arms wrap around her in a tight hug, one that returned in kind.

"See you around?" Max said.

"Possibly," the Doctor said. "Keep an eye out for a big blue box, phenomenal camouflage but you've learned to notice things that might stand out."

That made Max laugh a bit, a tension in her body implied many of the horrors would need to be settled with time. The Doctor could only wish her friend luck, knowing that if anything ever happened, the Time Lord would be there, always. They let go after a moment, and Max Lin returned to Jaret V. Her comrades barely noticed the difference, Max had explained she got lost in the Tardis but found her way home. Nothing helped a lie like a bit of truth.

No one noticed the Tardis fade away as Max Lin walked back to her final destination.

The house still stood where it had before. A red building that radiated like a ruby at night. Max Lin walked up to the door, no hesitation. She knocked three times, trying to ignore how hollow the noise seemed on the other end. Waiting a lifetime in a minute, Max almost felt like turning when she heard a metal lock click open. Light from the hall painted everything like an angelic halo around golden hair. Her eyes were wide with shock, almost looking prepped to wake up from a dream. Max had a way, the only way that kept her going, to prove this to be true.

She walked over to the garden next to the front door. Hooking her fingers through soft soil, Max pulled up a small cube from the dirt, damn near indestructible. Unlocking it showed a priceless promise.

"Sorry it took so long," Max said. "I just needed to make sure nothing stopped me from asking you something. Been on my mind for three years. I know it's s—"

Lips collided with hers. They fell right onto the grass. Tears drenched both their faces. Even when the kissing stopped, it was more than enough to just hold the other. She barely processed, how much time they spent there. While standing, Max noticed a slight glint on Candace's finger.

"We can take all the time we need," Candace said. "Can I… just wear it for the night? I really like how this feels." There could be a debate if that meant the ring or the hand holding Candace's. Max nodded, she had learned all about the value of time.

 **Epilogue**

Alone in a Tardis, the story of the Doctor's life. Her first bit of time with this new face was very exciting. Between new friends and old, the path ahead was clear. She had embraced it when fulfilling the right of passage and renewed it now with both her Granddaughter and a former athlete clear in her mind. She had rejected the Valeyard, but that left the question that may always haunt her, always drive her.

 _Who are you?_

The name was one thing, but everything it promised to be… that was worth finding an answer to.

With the flick of a switch, the Tardis began its wild journey to everywhere at any time. The Doctor rested, looking forward to new friends, dangers, and whole worlds to discover.

The journey continued from where it began in a junkyard in England.

An adventure continued, and far from over.

 **End of the 13** **th** **Doctor Adventures (Year 1)**


End file.
